Header for exchanger bundle of a heat exchanger

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a header usable with an exchanger bundle of a heat exchanger. Said exchanger bundle includes at least one first row of tubes and one second row of tubes. The tubes are suitable for enabling the flow of a first fluid in the exchanger bundle. The header includes at least: —one first contact element for supporting the top side of a first end of the first row of tubes; —one second contact element for supporting the bottom side of said first end of the first row of tubes and supporting the top side of a first end of the second row of tubes, the thickness of the second contact element defining the distance between said first and second rows of tubes; and —one third contact element for supporting the bottom side of said first end of the second row of tubes.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a header for an exchanger bundle of aheat exchanger, such as a heat exchanger which is designed for motorvehicle. The header according to the present invention is particularlysuitable for withstanding high pressures.

PRIOR ART

A heat exchanger of the type used in the motor vehicle industry inprinciple comprises a casing or housing comprising in its interior heatexchange elements which permit the exchange of heat from a first fluidto a second fluid. These elements which permit this exchange of heat canfor example comprise tubes.

The tubes situated inside a heat exchanger can be present within anexchanger bundle comprising a plurality of tubes arranged substantiallyparallel to one another. The tubes can be positioned in a row or aplurality of rows which are parallel to one another. The tubes areretained at their respective ends on a first and a second header. Thetubes make it possible to guide the first fluid inside said tubes, froma first end of an exchanger bundle to the second end of the exchangerbundle.

The tubes taken as a whole define between one another, in combinationwith the walls of the housing, channels which guide the second fluidfrom the second end of the heat exchanger to the first end of the heatexchanger. Thus, a heat exchanger makes possible in particular thecounter-current circulation of a first and a second fluid within saidheat exchanger.

Other elements such as plates, fins and flow disturbers can be providedas a complement to the tubes which form the exchanger bundle, in orderto improve the exchange of heat between the first and the second fluid.

Headers which are designed for an exchanger bundle of a heat exchangerare known in the prior art. The housing is in the form of a casingcomprising a plurality of walls which form the exterior of the housing,and define the volume in which the heat exchange takes place. Inprinciple, the housing is provided with inlets and outlets which aredesigned for the first and the second fluid at a first and a second endof the housing. These inlets and outlets thus allow the heat exchangerto be connected to inlet piping which makes it possible to convey thefirst and second fluids in the direction of the heat exchanger and tooutlet piping which make it possible to convey the first and secondfluids to a final destination, when said first and second fluids havepassed through the heat exchanger.

A header for the exchanger bundle of a heat exchanger as described aboveis disclosed in European patent application EP 2463612. The headerdisclosed in said application comprises a plurality of elements stackedon one another inside a housing in order to obtain said header.

According to document EP 2463612, the elements must be secured to oneanother before the use of the heat exchanger. Securing of the differentelements to one another is essential for optimum functioning, in orderto allow the heat exchanger comprising a header of this type to functionin high-pressure conditions. However, the securing methods arerelatively complex and costly. In addition, the weight of all thecomponents increases the weight of the vehicles significantly.

SUBJECT OF THE INVENTION

The objective of the present invention concerns obtaining a header foran exchanger bundle of a heat exchanger which has low production costsand a reduced weight, and makes it possible to ensure functioning whichis designed for high-pressure conditions.

The header for an exchanger bundle of a heat exchanger according to thepresent invention is intended to eliminate the disadvantages of the heatheaders known in the prior art, by proposing a design which is improvedin terms of the establishment of heat exchange.

For this purpose, the present invention concerns a header which isdesigned to be used with an exchanger bundle of a heat exchanger, saidexchanger bundle comprising at least a first row of tubes and a secondrow of tubes, the tubes being designed to permit the circulation of afirst fluid in the exchanger bundle, the header comprising at least:

-   -   a first contact element, in order to retain the upper side of a        first end of the first row of tubes;    -   a second contact element, in order to retain the lower side of        said first end of the first row of tubes, and in order to retain        the upper side of a first end of the second row of tubes, the        thickness of the second contact element defining the distance        between said first and second rows of tubes; and    -   a third contact element, in order to retain the lower side of        said first end of the second row of tubes;    -   the first, second and third contact elements being equidistant;    -   the first end of the first contact element being connected to        the first end of the second contact element by means of at least        a first bent connector; and    -   the second end of the second contact element being connected to        the second end of the third contact element by means of at least        a second bent connection element.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the plate comprisesmetal such as aluminum.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the material ofsaid plate comprises plated aluminum.

The invention also relates to a plate made of a bendable materialcomprising bending elements, said plate being configured such that, whenit is bent by means of bending elements, it forms a header as claimed inany one of the preceding claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The objectives, subjects and characteristics of the present invention,as well its advantages, will become more clearly apparent from readingthe following description of a preferred embodiment of a heat exchangeraccording to the invention, provided with reference to the drawings, inwhich;

FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of a heat exchanger comprising a header ofan exchanger bundle according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 represents the header in FIG. 1, according to an initial flatform, before bending of said header;

FIG. 3 shows the header in FIG. 2, according to an intermediate form,during the bending of said header;

FIG. 4 represents the header according to FIGS. 2 and 3, according to afinal form, after the bending of said header;

FIG. 5 shows an assembled heat exchanger comprising the header accordingto FIGS. 2, 3, 4; and

FIG. 6 represents a header for an exchanger bundle according to a secondembodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF AN EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1 represents, according to an exploded view, a first embodiment ofa heat exchanger 1 comprising at least one header 60 for an exchangerbundle 10 according to the present invention.

The heat exchanger 1 comprises walls 2, 3, 4 which, when assembled, forma casing or housing representing the outer wall of said heat exchanger1. The wall 3 forms the upper part of the heat exchanger 1, the wallforms the base of said heat exchanger 1, and the walls 2, 4, form thelateral parts of said heat exchanger 1.

Inside the casing, the heat exchanger contains an exchanger bundle whichpermits an exchange of heat between a first and a second fluid. Theexchanger bundle comprises rows of tubes 30 which are stacked in amanner substantially parallel to one another, in order to form a stack31.

At its two ends, the stack 31 of tubes 30 is connected to two headers 60with a plurality of functions. Thus, the headers 60 can receive andretain the different tubes 30 of the stack 31. The headers 60 arearranged in a position substantially parallel to one another.

The form and functioning of the headers 60 are described hereinafter indetail with reference to FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 4.

As shown in FIG. 1, each header 60 is connected to a connection element40, 50. The connection 40 is provided with an inlet 41 for a firstfluid, said fluid being able to penetrate inside the heat exchanger 1via the inlet 41. The connection 50 is provided with an outlet 51. Thefirst fluid can circulate inside the different tubes 30 which form thestack 31 in the direction of the connection 50. The first fluid can thenexit from the heat exchanger 1 via the outlet 51 of the connection 50.

The first fluid, which circulates from the inlet 41 to the outlet 51, isfor example a fluid such as the oil which is present in an oil circuit,and needs to be cooled during its conventional use. In order to becooled, said fluid circulates inside tubes 30 which together form thestack 31. Channels are present on the exterior of the tubes 30, thusallowing a second fluid to be displaced in a counter-current mannerrelative to the first fluid, from an inlet 22 which is present in thewall 2, to an outlet 21 which is also present in said wall 2. In orderto create the different channels between the tubes 30 which form thestack 31, said tubes 30 can be connected to one another, with a distanceimposed between each tube such that the second fluid can circulate fromthe inlet 22 to the outlet 21.

According to the present invention, it is important for the differenttubes 30 which together form the stack 31 to be secured in an optimummanner, in order to permit use of the heat exchanger 1 in high-pressureconditions.

According to FIG. 1, the headers 60 make it possible to secure thedifferent plates relative to one another, and to ensure thefunctionality of the heat exchanger 1.

FIG. 2 shows one of the headers 60 in the initial form of a flat plate.The header 60 comprises two faces, and is punched such as to arrange thecirculation of the fluid between the different tubes, as well as thepassage for the tubes themselves. The plate as shown in FIG. 2 is bentduring a bending procedure in order to obtain the header 60, as shown inFIG. 1. The intermediate form obtained during the bending procedure isshown in FIG. 3. The final form of the head after the bending procedureis shown in FIG. 4.

In order to permit implementation of the bending process and thedifferent functionalities of the header 60, said header 60 is providedwith a series of contact elements 61, 62 which are connected to oneanother by means of connection elements 63, 64, 65 designed to be bent.Each first contact element 61 is connected to a second contact element62 by means of two connection elements 63 which are locatedsubstantially on the borders of the plate. Each second contact element62 is connected to a first adjacent contact element 61 by means of aseries of four connection elements 64 situated between the two bordersof the plate 60. The contact elements 61, 62 delimit between one anotherthe openings 65 which are designed to allow a tube of the stack 30 topass individually as shown in FIG. 1.

The openings 66, 67, 68 form together a passage which makes it possibleto allow a row of tubes 30 of the stack 31 to pass. The thickness of theplate 60 corresponds to the height of passage of the cooling liquidwhich circulates between the different tubes 30, from the inlet 22 tothe outlet 21, as shown in FIG. 1. The plate 60 is specifically treatedto obtain chamfered surfaces for the purpose of facilitating theinsertion of the different tubes 30 of the stack 31. In addition, theplate 60 comprises grooves which make it possible to avoid blocking ofthe micro-channels by the fluid before the plate is bent. The header 60,which is obtained after bending of the plate 60, as shown in FIG. 4, isgenerally designed for a number of tubes less than 30. In practice, thethickness of the header 60, as shown in FIG. 4, is limited toapproximately 500 mm. In addition, according to the present invention,the different tubes 30 which form together the stack 31 are secured bymeans of a light, inexpensive device.

FIG. 5 shows the use within a heat exchanger 1 of the header 60according to the present invention. The outer wall of the heat exchangeris partially removed in order to show the different elements of saidheat exchanger 1. FIG. 5 shows the outlet 21 via which the cooling fluidis discharged. The header 60, as well as the different tubes 30 whichform the stack 31, can be seen inside the heat exchanger 1. Theproduction of a header 60 as shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 4 is relativelyinexpensive, and makes it possible to obtain a particularly light header60. Thanks to the form and functionalities of the header 60, the heatexchanger 1 can be used in high-pressure conditions.

FIG. 6 represents a header 70 according to a variant of the presentinvention. The header 70 comprises contact elements 61 which make itpossible to retain the different tubes 30 of a stack 31 according toFIG. 1, and which are connected by connection elements 72 situated onthe lateral edge of said header 70. The connection elements 72 make itpossible to carry out a bending process in order to obtain said header70.

1. A header which is designed to be used with an exchanger bundle of aheat exchanger, said exchanger bundle comprising: at least a first rowof tubes and a second row of tubes, the tubes being designed to permitthe circulation of a first fluid in the exchanger bundle−, the headercomprising at least: a first contact element to retain the upper side ofa first end of the first row of tubes; a second contact element toretain the lower side of said first end of the first row of tubes, andin order to retain the upper side of a first end of the second row oftubes, the thickness of the second contact element defining the distancebetween said first and second rows of tubes; and a third contact elementto retain the lower side of said first end of the second row of tubes,wherein: the first, second and third contact elements are equidistant,the first end of the first contact element is connected to the first endof the second contact element by at least a first bent connector, andthe second end of the second contact element is connected to the secondend of the third contact element by at least a second bent connectionelement.
 2. The header as claimed in claim 1, wherein said headercomprises metal such as aluminum.
 3. The header as claimed in claim 2,wherein the material of said header comprises plated aluminum.
 4. Aplate made of a bendable material comprising bending elements, saidplate being configured such that, when the plate is bent by means ofconnection elements, the plate forms a header as claimed in claim 1.